Drunk driver gets community service after killing man and severely injuring two Garda

19-01-2018 08:36AM

Completely off the point ..... but when was 66 years old considered “elderly”??

Maybe at 86......but not 66 !

(I don’t agree with leniency of this sentence, if you could call it that . I also agree with previous posters comment on very bright lights if you come around a bend and not knowing what side of the road they’re on - can be disorientating )

BattleCorp · 19-01-2018 09:30AM

dreamers75 wrote: »

God bless the Healy Raes, this is what they are fighting for.

This guy was over 5 times the legal drink drive limit.

Have a look at your statement above and have another think about it.

Borderfox · 19-01-2018 09:35AM

I think the request for clemency from the victims family should have been disregarded and the safety of the general public be taken into consideration

19-01-2018 09:58AM

Borderfox wrote: »

I think the request for clemency from the victims family should have been disregarded and the safety of the general public be taken into consideration

Yes, And the fact that there were three victims (two injured guards)

rgodard80a · 19-01-2018 10:05AM

For better or worse, "justice" tends to take the perpetrators family into account too... If he was the main breadwinner, then they could lose their family home etc.

sentient_6 · 19-01-2018 10:10AM

Borderfox wrote: »

I think the request for clemency from the victims family should have been disregarded and the safety of the general public be taken into consideration

I can assure you that the majority of the victims family are not at all happy with this sentencing. The way this is been phrased on here and the media in general is very frustrating.

Billgirlylegs · 19-01-2018 10:22AM

rgodard80a wrote: »

For better or worse, "justice" tends to take the perpetrators family into account too... If he was the main breadwinner, then they could lose their family home etc.

I think this is the "published " reason why there was no jail sentence.
That and "remorse and Rehab"

Strange there was no suspended sentence, and why did he lose his licence for 3 years. That is no mans land.
Either a lifetime ban or nothing ( if the thinking was impact on his family)

As was said earlier, his concern for his family was nil when he got into a car in a condition where he couldn't see a car with blue flashing lights in his face.
Was it stated was his speed was?

19-01-2018 10:29AM

Billgirlylegs wrote: »

As was said earlier, his concern for his family was nil when he got into a car in a condition where he couldn't see a car with blue flashing lights in his face.

Was it stated that he didn't see the Garda car at all?

I presume he didn't see the Gardaí themselves, beside their car parked at night time, on the wrong side of a possibly unlit road, who may have been struggling to deal with a man who was crawling along the road in dark clothes.

Macy0161 · 19-01-2018 10:32AM

Most road death criminal convictions have disproportionately low sentencing in my opinion. There is very little deterrent to endangering others behind the wheel - little chance of actually being caught, and then ridiculously lenient sentences in the courts.

Danjamin1 · 19-01-2018 10:45AM

Deleted User wrote: »

Was it stated that he didn't see the Garda car at all?

I presume he didn't see the Gardaí themselves, beside their car parked at night time, on the wrong side of a possibly unlit road, who may have been struggling to deal with a man who was crawling along the road in dark clothes.

In the hard shoulder, let's keep the facts straight.

Shenshen · 19-01-2018 10:51AM

Deleted User wrote: »

Was it stated that he didn't see the Garda car at all?

I presume he didn't see the Gardaí themselves, beside their car parked at night time, on the wrong side of a possibly unlit road, who may have been struggling to deal with a man who was crawling along the road in dark clothes.

On the hard shoulder, illuminated by their own headlights, the blue flashing lights and (one would hope) his own headlights....

19-01-2018 10:56AM

Danjamin1 wrote: »

In the hard shoulder, let's keep the facts straight.

I didn't say otherwise.

JMNolan · 19-01-2018 10:58AM

Deleted User wrote: »

I presume he didn't see the Gardaí themselves

Probably a fair assumption seeing as he was blind drunk.

Doctors room ghost · 19-01-2018 11:15AM

[Deleted User] wrote: »

I didn't say otherwise.

The guards were attending an emergency as was their job.If the drunk showed any concern for anybody but himself and organized a lift or a taxi instead of being a selfish idiot and driving he would have seen them or at least have a reasonable chance of acting and driving accordingly.
There’s no justice in that.its a Mickey Mouse sentence.should have got 5 years and a lifetime driving ban.why 3 years.
As for the depression and anxiety that’s the mental health card played in court now.if he reoffends now and alcohol is involved he’s going to have to up the game and play the addiction card.thats the normal pattern nowadays with strong reference to the persons unfortunate hard upbringing. I wish all well involved in the case and everyone has to get on with their lives but it’s just a soft and strange sentence to see

Danjamin1 · 19-01-2018 11:24AM

Deleted User wrote: »

I didn't say otherwise.

I think it's important to distinguish between crawling on the road, i.e. in the driving lane, and crawling in the hard shoulder. To be fair I don't know the stretch of road, perhaps there's very little between the lane & the hard shoulder but it's absolutely not the fault of the Gardai who were attending an incident as is their job.

tinofapples · 19-01-2018 11:28AM

It's a joke of a sentence, as already mentioned the victims family statement shouldn't have been a major factor. Great you are forgiving people but justice still needs to be served. 5 times over the limit, killing someone and injuring another pretty badly. He should have at minimum be banned from driving for life but wasn't cause it would have impacted his life too much.

Danjamin1 · 19-01-2018 11:36AM

tinofapples wrote: »

It's a joke of a sentence, as already mentioned the victims family statement shouldn't have been a major factor. Great you are forgiving people but justice still needs to be served. 5 times over the limit, killing someone and injuring another pretty badly. He should have at minimum be banned from driving for life but wasn't cause it would have impacted his life too much.

Exactly, never mind the life he's taken and the other that he's ruined (I believe permanent brain injury was mentioned for the female garda?) it'd apparently be too harsh to actually punish this fool. He has to live with the consequences of his actions and I hope he suffers with that guilt but that's not a substitute for a custodial sentence. This man gets to continue to live his life free in the community with others having suffered the consequences of his actions.

Caliden · 19-01-2018 11:53AM

If that was Judge Mary Fahy he was up in front of she would've locked him up and thrown away the key.

I can imagine the 2 Gardai injured are going to take him to court for injuries now given the guilty sentencing.

tinofapples · 19-01-2018 11:58AM

Caliden wrote: »

I can imagine the 2 Gardai injured are going to take him to court for injuries now given the guilty sentencing.

I hope they do :mad:

Snickers Man · 19-01-2018 01:06PM

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

Ah will you stop.a can of worms that don’t need opening.how many pints would a 20 stone man be allowed before driving compared to a 12 stone man factoring in metabolism.
Drink driving is wrong full stop. If you want pints leave the car at home and organize a lift or a taxi myself included.

This is the Irish disease right there: you're not really drinking unless you're getting sloshed. There's no point having only one or two: you might as well make a night of it.

It's balderdash and the foundation of all of our drinking problems. We don't actually drink too much overall compared with other nations: we just drink in binges the purpose of which is to get pissed. And all of our legislation aimed supposedly at dealing with this only makes it worse. (eg excessive taxation and price fixing, draconian measures for people who drive after minimal alcohol consumption, restrictions on selling times, attempts to ban alcohol from sporting occasions etc etc)

Never ever get drunk and drive, should be the motto.
Instead we have poseurs and shape throwers arguing that a single pint (or two) is the moral equivalent of flying a plane after downing a bottle of whiskey.

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

As for Healy rae the country on its knees coming out of a recession and he wants to draft in the army to pull up a few bushes in Kerry and legalize drink driving to suit rural publicans

I agree: they're a bunch of shameless on-the-make gombeen arseholes. But on this issue, they're not wrong.

Snickers Man · 19-01-2018 01:09PM

Hector Bellend wrote: »

In this day and age there is no Justification for driving with any amount of alcohol in your system. Simply put there should be a zero limit.

You cannot defend the indefensible.

It's time we start throwing the book at people like this. We need stiffer and more meaningful sentences to reflect the gravity of these offences.

Bellend by name......

You're arguing two different points here as if they're the same. They aren't.

19-01-2018 01:20PM

Danjamin1 wrote: »

I think it's important to distinguish between crawling on the road, ie. in the driving lane, and crawling in the hard shoulder. To be fair I don't know the stretch of road, perhaps there's very little between the lane & the hard shoulder but it's absolutely not the fault of the Gardai who were attending an incident as is their job.

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

The guards were attending an emergency as was their job.

I certainly would not say it was their fault.

The evidence was they were on the wrong side of the road, on the hard shoulder. I'm fully aware they were there because it was their job and they were dealing with an emergency. They didn't have the luxury of circling around for a safe place to park as some fellow was crawling around in the dark in dark clothes.

Doctors room ghost · 19-01-2018 01:24PM

Snickers Man wrote: »

This is the Irish disease right there: you're not really drinking unless you're getting sloshed. There's no point having only one or two: you might as well make a night of it.

It's balderdash and the foundation of all of our drinking problems. We don't actually drink too much overall compared with other nations: we just drink in binges the purpose of which is to get pissed. And all of our legislation aimed supposedly at dealing with this only makes it worse. (eg excessive taxation and price fixing, draconian measures for people who drive after minimal alcohol consumption, restrictions on selling times, attempts to ban alcohol from sporting occasions etc etc)

Never ever get drunk and drive, should be the motto.
Instead we have poseurs and shape throwers arguing that a single pint (or two) is the moral equivalent of flying a plane after downing a bottle of whiskey.

I agree: they're a bunch of shameless on-the-make gombeen arseholes. But on this issue, they're not wrong.

You know the story yourself though snickers.a lad goes to the pub,brings the car and has 3 pints,feels fine.next thing he meets patsy who’s home from Australia for the Christmas and they have a right blast at the pints.still has the car so when sessions over he drives home pisd and kills someone on route.and im a seasoned drinker talking.I just reckon if you’re drinking you should leave the car after you.safer for all.

Get Real · 19-01-2018 01:26PM

dense wrote: »

Did the Guards have to be positioned on the wrong side of a sweeping bend, was the reason for doing so explained?

There was an ill man on his hands and knees on the hard shoulder. That was where he was found. I don't know what other option there was. They made the best of the situation, used lights to remain visible.

So you just suggest they don't stop there? What if the man was hit while they tried to find parking? How would that sound?

Or what if they parked on the other side of the road and were hit anyway. Do we blame them then for not trying to use the car as a physical safety barrier against oncoming traffic? (Which seems the logical explanation)

A man was 5 times the limit, chose to get into the car, and this happened. While helping an ill man on a dark road. One person killed, one put in a coma, and the other injured. Nobody wanted that to happen. But it did. Man with a feed of drink in him is to blame.

DJIMI TRARORE · 19-01-2018 01:32PM

I'm surprised the judge didn't give the driver 100k compo for stress and mental anguish

19-01-2018 01:53PM

Get Real wrote: »

A man was 5 times the limit, chose to get into the car, and this happened. While helping an ill man on a dark road. One person killed, one put in a coma, and the other injured. Nobody wanted that to happen. But it did. Man with a feed of drink in him is to blame.

100% to blame? Without blaming the Gardaí for doing their best in an emergency, do you think other circumstances such as that emergency contributed in any way whatsoever?

TerrorFirmer · 19-01-2018 02:43PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Was it stated that he didn't see the Garda car at all?

I presume he didn't see the Gardaí themselves, beside their car parked at night time, on the wrong side of a possibly unlit road, who may have been struggling to deal with a man who was crawling along the road in dark clothes.

It mentioned in one of the reports that he thought it was a car driving on the wrong side of the road coming straight at him....not a leap to assume that he thought that because he was sloshed.

The Garda car was, of course, stationary on the hard shoulder with blue lights flashing and headlights on - a sober driver would not have driven straight into them at full speed.

To try and suggest that it is anything other than 100% down to the seriously diminished response/logical thinking of a very drunk driver is utterly bizarre.

Neyite · 19-01-2018 03:37PM

dense wrote: »

But stopped, with dipped headlights on, which, on the "wrong side of the road" means they had the potential to dazzle oncoming traffic as dipped lights beam to the left, towards oncoming traffic.

In rural areas, headlights are your only source of illumination. You can see from the pictures that there are no street lights on that stretch of road. If they spotted the man they were looking for crawling along a hard shoulder they probably wanted to rule out that he didn't already get a hit & run injury, so shining the headlights on the area around him, to check him for any blood or pain before attempting to move him might have been what they are trained to do.

Also, in rural areas, even if you can't see around a bend, you see a hue of blue lights flashing before you actually see the car or the lights. Emergency services are the only vehicles legally allowed to have blue lights, so any driver knows they belong to a garda vehicle, a fire truck, or an ambulance. In anyone's world, that means slow the fcuk right down and be prepared to stop.

GSOC investigated the scene and found no evidence of Garda misconduct. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/no-evidence-of-garda-misconduct-in-death-of-man-66-1.2517930

The location of the accident was 2km north of Ardrahan on the N18. It's a pretty decent wide road. The reports state it was a sweeping bend rather than a sharp one so it wasn't like the driver hadn't time to slow down. By rural standards, that's not a bad bend at all. If you look at what I've just linked, you'll see it's the driver side of the garda car has the impact. This side of the car was on the inner part of the hard shoulder near the grass verge. If the drunk drove so fast it hit the car and shunted the victim into the field, he had to have driven into the hard shoulder rather than clipped the car on the passenger as he flew past (which is how I initially imagined the accident might have happened before I saw the photos.)

Nestor had left his home at 7pm the previous evening to attend a wake.
He consumed a pint in a pub before going to the wake, where he drank a further three to four cans of beer, subsequently having another pint in a pub in Ardrahan before he left to drive home.

There's roughly a pint in a can. That's five to six pints he drank. When you drink that much you know you are too pissed to drive. Plus he went to a pub, drank a pint, drove to a wake, drank a lot more, then drove back to a pub and drank another pint. Then was driving home when he caused the collision.

weldoninhio · 19-01-2018 03:40PM

Get Real wrote: »

There was an ill man on his hands and knees on the hard shoulder. That was where he was found. I don't know what other option there was. They made the best of the situation, used lights to remain visible.

So you just suggest they don't stop there? What if the man was hit while they tried to find parking? How would that sound?

Or what if they parked on the other side of the road and were hit anyway. Do we blame them then for not trying to use the car as a physical safety barrier against oncoming traffic? (Which seems the logical explanation)

A man was 5 times the limit, chose to get into the car, and this happened. While helping an ill man on a dark road. One person killed, one put in a coma, and the other injured. Nobody wanted that to happen. But it did. Man with a feed of drink in him is to blame.

100%. What if they hadn't been helping the man? What if it was just a checkpoint? Seems to me that it didn't matter what was on the road that night, the drunken idiot was going through it.

jackofalltrades · 20-01-2018 03:48AM

Never thought I'd see the day where I'd be wishing someone got a suspended sentence.
Seems like an incredibly lenient sentence.
A case like this seems like a good candidate for some kind of house arrest arrangement.
A 3 year ban as well is also a joke, this guy shouldn't be let near a car again until his has given up the booze for good.

Drunk driver gets community service after killing man and severely injuring two Garda

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